Scholz becomes German leader - a podcast by BBC World Service

Olaf Scholz has been sworn in as German chancellor, after 16 years of Angela Merkel rule. We find out about Germany's economic challenges from Peter Bofinger, who is a German economist, and former member of the German Council of Economic Experts. And we discuss the economic policies of the new coalition with Dr Ingrid Nestle, Green Party member of the German parliament. Also in the programme, with worrying signs that Russia may be planning new military action in Ukraine, we hear how businesses in Ukraine's second city Kharkiv are faring. Viktor Kuzmenko sells heating systems and tells us how business collapsed after hostilities broke out with Russia in 2013. Peter Dickinson is publisher of Business Ukraine magazine, and explains how the business picture has improved since then. And Olga Shapoval, executive director of the Kharkiv IT Cluster discusses how the threat of conflict with Russia has forced the IT sector in the city to change its way of working. Plus, the social media app TikTok has begun a foray into live shopping. We explore the likely success of such events with Kate Hardcastle, who is a retail consultant who advises businesses on strategy. Today's edition is presented by Mike Johnson, and produced by Philippa Goodrich and Tom Kavanagh. (Picture: Angela Merkel and Olaf Scholz. Picture credit: Reuters.)

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